‘Staycationers’ Hike Occupancy at W. Va. Campground

More vacationers are opting for a more rustic getaway than in years past, say rangers at West Virginia’s Kanawha State Forest, where campground usage has increased from last year, the Charleston Daily Mail reported.

Kevin Dials, assistant superintendent at Kanawha State Forest, said they had 25% occupancy at the park’s campground for June and July, an increase from the 10% occupancy the park had seen in the last two to three years.

The crowd at the campground was “moderate,” he said, with three or four pulling out Sunday morning to hit the road home and a handful sticking around for the week. He said they have quite a few campgrounds reserved for Labor Day weekend.

Dials, who’s worked at the park for three years, said the numbers have risen this year partly because of the park’s pool reopening and the good weather. Also, he said, more people are choosing to spend their vacation time camping.

“We’re seeing this kind of phenomenon called staycationing where folks are taking their vacations closer to home, but it doesn’t necessarily fit with us because we’re seeing a lot of out-of-state campers,” Dials said. “A lot of them (campers) are from out of state but they’re still close because most of them are coming from the surrounding states Pennsylvania and Ohio.”